Twisting Sun
by spiralookami
Summary: The ring gave her the ability to go into a world she thought was only fantasy. An evil shadow wishes to enter the world she would rather forget. "...If you want to keep this freedom, you'll have to shine brighter than the sun." OC, R
1. I Am Ari Ranna

The bell signaling the start of the first day of school rang. The front doors opened, and dozens of students bustled into the hallways. Lockers clanged open, friends met up with each other and discussed how their vacation went, and a group of nerds ran fearfully like a herd of gazelle from the random bullies scattered throughout the school.

Throughout this chaos, a young frazzled-looking girl had managed to claw her way through the sea of bodies and into classroom. She stumbled to a nearby desk and sat down.

"Stupid hallways…" she grumbled before taking out a book from her bag and diving right into as the other students began to come into the classroom. After a few short minutes the teacher arrived as well, ushering a few stray students into her room.

As the bell rings, the woman turns around and smiles as she sees all of the students in their seats. Her gaze lingers on the young, brown haired girl from earlier. She takes a few steps forward and gently places her hand on the desk.

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I look up to see a woman in maybe her late 30's standing in front of me. She's wearing a tacky yellow sundress with an even tackier green cardigan. One hand was lightly touching the desk in was in, the other held some papers, and she had a wide smile on her face.

I lowered the book I was reading and stared at her.

"Could you please put the book away, Dearie? Class is about to start." she asked in an overly sweet voice that made me sick.

I close the book and stuff it in my bag, the entire time my eyes never left the woman's face. Her smile had never faltered either.

'_That smile_….'

It stood there, unmoving. My eyes examined every crevice, every crack on that woman's face. She might have looked like she was just being overly kind to a normal person, but I could tell otherwise. Seeing past a person's outer mask was one of my few talents. Inside she was highly irritated. She didn't like her job as a teacher, not one bit; probably because of the kids. I don't blame her. If I was in here shoes I would've demanded a transfer a long time ago. Maybe she had. What mattered now was that she didn't care about anyone in this entire school.

Neither did I.

"Could you please not call me '_Dearie_', Ma'am? I do have a name you know." I sat relaxed in my chair, legs crossed slightly as I gazed at her. She remained unfazed at my comment.

She looked at me quizzically. "Oh? And what might that be?"

"It's-" I started to say, but then she cut me off with, "I'm sure I'll just find out after you take this small inquiry I made. That way I'll be able to get to know you all so much better!" The rest of the class groaned.

I frowned. 'It looks like she really doesn't care about anyone or their opinions…'

"Now don't forget to answer these as truthfully as you can, Dearies!"

As she handed out copies of the inquiry that was supposedly used so she could 'get to know us better', I looked over my own copy.

The pale yellow paper looked average, asking the usual things such as name, age, likes and dislikes. It was only the final question that seemed to amuse me.

[If you had 3 wishes, what would you use them for?]

At reading that, I smiled a little. This whole thing was a joke. This woman was probably only trying to find out more about the class so she could use it against us later. I picked up my pencil and began to write.

'You know, some people can't handle the truth. Let's just hope that she can handle the truth about me, Ari Ranna….'


	2. The Raven

"Miss Ranna, do you know why I have asked you to stay after school today?" asked Ms. Trovell.

"No Ma'am, I'm afraid I do not."

If you remember correctly, I recently had to fill out an 'inquiry' made by a certain teacher in a tacky, green cardigan sweater.

That, ladies and gentlemen, was Ms. Trovell.

I now stood in front of Ms. Trovell as she interrogated me about my rather 'questionable' inquiry sheet.

"Miss Ranna, _Dearie_…," I felt my eye twitch at that word, "I read your inquiry yesterday, and found it a bit….strange…"

"How so, Ma'am?" I replied boredly. It was already past 3:00 and school was over. I would've been halfway home already if she hadn't asked me to 'come by her room' earlier. This woman was really starting to get on my nerves…..

She gives me a hesitant look before handing me back my paper. I glance over it and feel myself smile inside, especially at number 13.

**1. [Name]** Ari Ranna

**2. [Age]** 16

**3. [Date of Birth]** October 17

**4. [Likes]** Kingdom Hearts, salty food, blankets, shiny things, music, and numerous anime and manga

**5. [Dislikes]** cold, spiders, garlic, and preps

**6. [Favorite Class]** Art

**7. [Least Favorite Class]** Math

**8. [Do you like working by yourself or with others? Why?] **

I like working by myself because others usually don't commit themselves to the task at hand.

**9. [How many people are in your immediate family, and who are they?]**

There is only myself and my mother.

**10. [Do you have any pets? If so, what are their names?]**

I have cat named Puka.

**11. [Who are your friends?]**

I don't have any.

**12. [Are you in a relationship with someone right now?]**

No.

**13. [Who are some people you look up to?(these can be certain celebrities, family members, someone who has helped the community, etc…)]**

Light Yagami, Lelouch vi Brittania, and Dane Cook.

**14. [What are your goals in life?]**

To rule a world.

**15. [If you had 3 wishes, what would you use them for?]**

1. The ability to leave this town

2. To have a nice place of my own, away from other people

3. People who are actually true friends, not just who say they are.

'The funny thing about this is that it's all true. Every last bit.'

"So what's the problem, Ms. Trovell?" I asked as I stuffed the paper into my hoodie's pocket. She looked at me with a hint of surprise and sighed.

"Your answers were a bit strange, especially for the last three questions. Who exactly are Light Yagami, Lelouch….what ever his name was, and Dane Cook?"

I straightened up and smiled. "They're the god of the new world, the 99th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire, and a famous comedian."

She stood there, mouth slightly agape at my rather…unusual answer.

"What?" I watched as she tried to come to terms with what I had said. The different ridiculous faces she went through made me smile a little. "That doesn't make any sense!" She said, flailing her arms above her, "Alright! What about question 14? How do you explain that one?"

"I simply think I would be interesting to rule a world. Something smaller than Earth preferably, but with a nice temperate forest and many different kinds of fruit trees…and no spiders. Definitely none of those."

She continued to stare, flabbergasted at my odd replies. "And question 15?" she meekly said, afraid of what the answer might be.

I open my mouth and take a breath as I begin my explanation. However, she quickly waves her hand dismissing me before I get a chance to begin.

"You know what? Nevermind. Just go home Ari, I'll see you tomorrow morning…"

With I quick nod I head out the door. 'That was more interesting than I thought, and her expression was just priceless…'

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The back door swung open with a small 'creak' as I trudged up the stairs and into my kitchen.

"I'm home!"

"Ari, you're late!" My mother turned to look at me from where she was by the sink and scowled, "I thought I told you to call first if you were going to be out hanging with your friends."

"Sorry mom. My homeroom teacher wanted to talk to me after class so I had no choice but to stay." I dumped my school books and bag in the chair next to me as I sat down. "Anyway I don't have any friends, not that I don't mind. It's just that no one in this town has the same interests as me. They're all too busy with their boyfriends, or their sports teams. Ugh…" With a yawn I slouch down in my seat and stare up at the ceiling. "Besides, there's nothing to do in this town anyway…"

Mom gave a small, "Hmm…" as she continued to wash dishes in the sink. The sound of clanking plates and silverware soon filled the quiet kitchen.

"How about we go see a movie, Ari?" I turned my head to see her smiling at me. "Well? How about it?"

I let out an indecisive groan, "I dunno….I guess…"

"That's good. I was thinking about seeing this one movie about a bank robbery, or another that has fairies and dragons…."

I sat and listened as she rambled off all of the different movies the theatre had, giving my own opinion about a few of them.

We finally decided to watch some comedy about a man and a duck named Wilbur. It would be showing at 9:00 that night, so I took my stuff to my room and lay on my bed. I was in no hurry to be prepared.

I roll over, hearing a crinkling sound as I did so. I reach in and pull out the inquiry from earlier; I had forgotten all about it. I flipped it over in my hands a couple of times, unsure of what I should do with it. A moment later I stood up and walked over to a nearby table. After rummaging through its contents I pull out a small yellow pushpin.

"I knew I still had one of these things…" I say triumphantly. Pushpin in one hand, paper in the other, I straighten up and lean over the table, securing the paper to the wall in front of me. After flattening the paper somewhat I stand back and enjoy my handiwork. The paper was the only thing on the white wall, and stood out like a sandy island in a vast frozen sea.

'Hmm…' my eyes wandered around the room, examining the emptiness of it all, 'I'm going to need to put up some more things…'

On the desk before me were several drawing I had done earlier, scattered messily on the tabletop. I quickly glanced at them all before setting them back on the table in a neat stack. None of them would do.

"I guess I'll have to find some other memories to fill up the emptiness, huh?"

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"So how did you like the movie, Ari? Did you think it was funny?"

We had left the theatre some time ago, and were now driving home. I glanced at the dashboard clock briefly before returning my gaze to the window.

_11:09_

That's what the clock read as it glowed in the darkness. The movie had been boring. Never in my life have I seen a duck take so many pies to the face before. It was times like this that made me think 'Where the hell are PETA?' That duck didn't just look unhappy, it looked downright suicidal.

"It was fine."

The ride continued in silence. Outside the sky was dark, and once in a while a bolt of lightning would illuminate the countryside. A storm was on its way, and I was hoping that we could make it home before it began to rain.

It was during this time that I noticed something weird. In the sky there seemed to be just this one spot where all of the lightning would appear. The longer I watched, the more lightning appeared. Then suddenly a huge lightning strike lit up the sky.

"Wow! Would you look at that?! That lightning is going nuts, eh Ari?"

I ignored my mother's question. Something was in the sky, I could tell. Every now and then a small flash would reveal what appeared to be a group of birds attacking a much smaller bird in the sky. The strange thing about these birds is that they didn't seem to attack normally. I had watched enough Discovery Channel as a kid, so I knew that birds attacked by pecking, not by jabbing an enemy with oversized, club-like feet.

'The hell?' I quickly reached under the passengers' seat of the car and felt around until I found a small digital camera my mom had left there. I aimed and focused, trying to get a good shot of the strange birds as they flew overhead. Every time a flash of light illuminated the sky, I would click the button furiously. The smaller bird that was being chased by the other birds was doing it's hardest to get away. Every once in a while though, a bolt of lightning would strike one of these birds with incredible precision, and it would explode, leaving only a pink glow behind. After a few minutes there were only two of those odd birds remaining, the lightning had taken the other birds out with ease.

Suddenly the smaller bird shot down ahead of us. I snapped a couple more pictures just as the clouds lit up once more. A huge bolt of lightning jutted from the sky right in front of us, swallowing all three birds in its light. I had to shield my eyes for a few moments and then it was gone.

"Woah…" I looked around in a desperate search for those birds, but it seemed as if they had simply disappeared.

"That was…odd…" Mom said as she glanced at me from the rearview mirror. "Ari, let's head home now. It's getting dangerous." I simply nodded in agreement.

"I wonder what was going o-!" A large black shape suddenly appeared in front of us. It hit the windshield with a loud 'thunk!' before flying above the car and falling behind us on the road.

My mother and I exchanged surprised looks, "What was that?!" I simply shrugged. My mother quickly stopped the car and got out. I watched her leave through the back window before I decided to get out myself.

I stepped out of the car and let out a yelp as I was hit by a strong, freezing wind.

'Ah! S-so cold!' My arms wrapped around me as I tried to keep warm. Cold weather was not something I agreed with.

"Ari!" My ears perked up at the sound of my name. "Grab the flashlight and get the shoebox from the trunk!" My mother stood about 30 feet away from me, kneeling next to something on the ground. I hurriedly popped open the trunk and grabbing the flashlight and emptying the shoebox of its contents before rushing back to my mother.

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I found her kneeling beside a mass of black feathers.

"What is it?" I came up beside her and handed her the box. The flashlight illuminated the ground, allowing me to see the scene more clearly.

Feathers were everywhere, and scattered among them were small drops of blood. In the center of it all rested the tattered body of a raven.

Mom scooped it up and placed it gently in the box.

"Will it be okay?" I eyed the bird worriedly. It looked as if it had hit something, which in this case was very true, and more. There were numerous scratches covering its body, and blood oozed out of a few of them. It tried to move a bit, and I saw that its right wing was bent oddly. Must've been broken.

"I hope so…." She hands me the box and stands up. "C'mon, let's go home."

We headed back to the car and got in. I placed the raven next to me. It was in really bad shape, too bad there weren't any kind of shelters nearby….

The remainder of the drive was in silence. Neither of us spoke, be both had too much on our minds.

This night had been…just too _weird_….

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Gah! I'm sorry if my story seems poorly written! I'm not very good at this stuff... (TT~TT")

Anyway, I hope you liked it...somewhat... I was supposed to start school today because winter break ended, but...I guess the weather didn't agree. If you have any comment's you like to make, please go ahead. I'd always like come constructive criticism.

I'll get around to drawing each of my characters soon. Art class always did get my brain going!

Happy New Year everyone!


	3. Something to Remember

Hey guys! Guess what? I'm in Chicago! Whoot! I'll be staying here till July with my cousin. Sweet huh?

Apparently a lot of people like my horrible way of writing(lol), so here's chapter 3. I'll try to start writing chapter 4 this week, and hopefully have it out soon. Don't forget to comment after you read this, and be sure to tell me of any typos or the sort? Kay?

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Chapter 03 – Something to Remember

A heavy rain had begun a few minutes after we returned to the car and lightning continued to flash dangerously overhead. Every few seconds a flash would appear and I would take that time to glance worriedly at the raven. It didn't seem to be moving much, and I could barely hear its panting breaths over the constant drum of the rain and thunder.

When we arrived back home, Mom rushed to the kitchen and began to search through the cupboard drawers. I listened to her rummaging as I walked into the living room. As I entered, I tried to flick on the lights, but thanks to the storm it was a futile effort. The power must have been knocked out while we were gone. I scowled at this unfortunate event and gently placed the shoe box-contained raven on the coffee table before plopping on the sofa myself.

Today had turned out to be pretty annoying.

Every few minutes the lighting would illuminate the room, allowing me to get a glimpse of the black raven in the even blacker room. It was around this time that I noticed something shining in the box. I leaned over and tried to see what it was, but in the darkness it was futile. The raven seemed to sense my actions and tried to scoot to the far end of the box.

"Ari?"

My ears perked at the sound of my name. "Yeah? What?"

"Could you come here for a sec? I'm trying to find a vet but I can't seem to find the phone book. "

I tried to peek at the shiny object again but the raven hid it from view. "Just a minute..."

With one hand I tried to reach under the raven and grab the mysterious object. The raven simply pecked at my hand with its sharp beak and I recoiled, muttering curse words and shaking my now injured hand.

I tried again, this time going slow and trying to show that I meant no harm. Once again, the raven attacked. I tried several times more, using both hands this time. The result was always the same.

'Stupid bird!'

"Ari! Hurry up!"

The sound of my mother's tone made me wince, "C-coming!"

I turned back to the raven. "This is it!"

By first using one hand as a distraction, I managed to shove the other under the bird, and then use the first hand to grab a magazine that happened to be conveniently nearby to use as a shield.

My fingers soon felt something cool, like metal, around one of the bird's legs. I wrapped my hand around the object and tried to gently pull it off. At this movement, the raven- which had remained unusually quiet since I found it- began to create a din and thrashed about furiously.

I quickly retracted my hand and fell back upon the couch. The now noisy raven squawked and attempted to climb its way out of the cardboard box. Its claws made loud scratching sounds against the material, and I watched with eyes wide as bloodied feathers began to cover the coffee table it had been placed on.

"Ari? What's going on?"

At the sound of my mother's voice I sprang up and scrambled over the side of the couch to the kitchen. "The raven's going nuts!" I exclaimed, "I saw something shiny and when I tried to see what it was it started going crazy!"

During the next few seconds, time seemed to slow down for me. The raven gave a final loud, "CAW!" before the windows flashed behind it, illuminating it's ruined figure in the center of the room. A bolt of lightning then crashed through the window and struck the table, causing the living room to explode with tremendous force as well as in light and sound. My mother grabbed me and threw me to the floor, yelling at me to cover my head as the scent of smoke began to fill the air. The house shook with the blast, violently rattling the windows and causing a few plates to fall to the ground from their places in the cabinets. The lights suddenly flickered to life for some reason and a heard my mom run towards a closet near the back of the kitchen. Fear gripped every inch of my body, and my right hand, which was clenched tightly on the top of my head, felt hot for some reason.

As the moment calmed down, I cautiously raised my head and looked around.

Debris rested everywhere. Pieces of furniture had been blown from our living room into the kitchen with the force of the blast. I saw my mom run past me into the living room and begin to put several small fires out with the fire extinguisher we kept in a nearby closet. All of the furniture had been destroyed. The only thing that remained were fragments that were burnt just like the walls and floor around them.

The coffee table-or what remained of it-was now nothing more than a smoldering pile of charcoal. There was no trace of the raven, except for maybe the few charred feathers that had survived the lightning strike.

"W-what was that, Mom?" I stared at the ruins of our living room from the doorway in disbelief. How could something go from perfectly normal one moment to absolute chaos the next?

She sighed as she put out the last few smoking piles, "I don't know, Ari. I'm just glad that neither of us were hurt. Too bad I can't say the same for that raven though..." Using her foot she nudged a few of the feathers in an attempt to illustrate her point. "Let's just get this mess cleaned up and head to bed. That sound good?"

I nodded slowly in response as I clutched the doorframe, shaken by a horrible realization I had made.

_I could have died. _

If I hadn't left the room a few seconds earlier, I would have been hit by that lightning too.

My whole body began to tremble. I let my hand slide down the paneling of the doorway and come to rest at my side as I took a nervous step back.

"H-hey, Mom? I-I need to d-do something real quick. Okay? Be right back!"

She stopped cleaning and turned to look at me but I had already run from the living room and up the stairs. I ran into my bedroom and slammed the door shut, leaning my back against the door as I did so.

My breathing was ragged and heavy and my eyes burned with tears as I slid down the door and rested my head on my knees.

_I could have died._

Those words kept repeating themselves in my head. If I had stayed any longer…..

A small gasp escaped my lips as I heard the sounds of Mom's footsteps echoing on the wooden stairs as she came to my room.

I heard her knock and ask, "Ari? Are you alright?" in a concerned tone. The same tone she had used when I was a child after all sorts of accidents I had during those years.

The doorknob jiggled, "Is something wrong, Ari? Can I come in?"

I shook my head a few times in order to try to clear up my thoughts.

_I could have died._

_I could have died._

_I could have died._

_I could have…_

I began to clear my head as the doorknob jiggled again.

"No Mom. I'll be fine. Head downstairs and keep cleaning. I'll help out in a few minutes. Promise."

There was a moment's pause. "Alright."

I let out a relieved sigh as I heard her turn around an begin her decent downstairs.

"But Ari," I turned my head slightly to listen to her voice from behind the door, "If you ever need help or to talk, please come and ask for my help." She let out a small sigh. "I know you're a teenager and don't want anyone's help with things most of the time, but please remember that I'm your mother, and that I care about you. So if there's anything you need help with, please don't be afraid to ask. Alright Dear?"

There was silence, but then I heard her start down the stairs again.

"'Mom…She really cares about me." I whispered to myself quietly. I soon stood up and tried to wipe my face with my hands to dry it, but when I touched it with my right hand, I had to pull away with a small, surprised hiss. It felt hot! Not like fire kind of hot, more like hot water from a shower kind of hot.

I looked at my clenched hand and slowly relaxed my fingers. A gasped slightly as I saw that sitting in the center of my palm was a shiny, gold ring. It wasn't complex or had any jewels. It was just a simple golden band. I slowly turned it around with my fingers and examined it. I stopped when something curious met my eye.

If I tilted it slightly and at the right angle while holding it up to the light, the words _Riizo Halywin Alderam_ appeared.

I furrowed my brow in confusion. 'What does that mean?' I asked myself.

I shook my head and shoved the ring in my back pocket as I headed downstairs. I had too many questions now. So many things had happened today, and I didn't have any answers, but I still had to remember something important.

_I could have died._

_But I didn't._

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I take constructive criticism not flame reviews! Please R & R and you get internet cookies! (Warning: flame reviews get burnt cookies :P )


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